Time Between Us
by QueenoftheSea101
Summary: Annie is determined to make a new life for herself and leave the old one behind. With an entire town to rebuild, she has more than enough to occupy her attention. But when someone from her past appears and old feelings resurface, she is forced to confront what she left behind.
1. Chapter 1

**One**

I reached up to wipe sweat from my brow as I drug my suitcase along the cobblestone path. The sun was beating down on my head, and I began to think that I may have made a mistake picking out my clothes this morning. In preparation for my move, I had selected a plain but sturdy dress I thought would be well suited for farming. The fact that it was multicolored saved it from being completely drab, but it was a far cry from my usual wardrobe. But today was the start of another life entirely, so maybe it was time to reinvent myself altogether.

The idea put some spring in my step and I marched with renewed vigor towards the imposing indigo building in the distance. Inside it, I was supposed to be greeted by a woman named Veronica, whom I had spoken to on the phone several times. When I put in my application for the open position in Oak Tree Town, she was the one who had contacted me, about a week later. After speaking for about twenty minutes it what could loosely be defined as a phone interview, she had offered me the job. I was more than a little surprised at the time given the way the conversation had gone.

"Why should I choose you when I have applicants who are much older and have relevant experience?" she had challenged, and I had scrambled for a decent reply.

Truth be told, if I was her, I probably would have gone with someone else if that was in fact true. But the fact that she had taken the time to call and speak to me anyway was a nice gesture. Thinking I didn't have a chance in the world, I relaxed and said what naturally came to mind.

"I would make up for my youth with enthusiasm," I said, "and as for experience, I'm a quick learner. No one is more motivated than I am."

She had paused on the other side of the line, and then continued her line of questioning. From what I could tell, she seemed very to the point and concise. The type of person who would probably be intimidating in person. My dress was practically stuck to my skin in places from sweating, and I wished I could change before I met her. I didn't want her to think me horribly out of shape, especially in this line of work. But there was nothing to be done for it now, as I couldn't very well wonder around town looking for a room to change in.

I finally reached the building's door and stood beneath the overhang for a second, catching my breath. Whoever built this town was a little too fond of stairs. I reached for the door handle, awkwardly holding it open with one arm as I drug my suitcase across the threshold. For the hundredth time, I wondered who I'd be working for at the ranch I was going to. Surely whoever it was would put me to work gardening in the fields or tending the animals. I had no qualms with manual labor; I was going to do everything in my power to be successful here.

Immediately to my right was a large room filled by two long couches and a coffee table with magazines stacked on top of it, so I imagined it was meant to be a waiting room. A few feet away was a tall brown desk with a tall brown haired woman standing behind it, and she was staring at me with calculating eyes. Her hair was pulled back in a tight bun and she wore a conservative blue dress that swished back and forth as she started towards me, so the material couldn't be as heavy as it looked.

"Are you Annie?" she asked.

I cleared my throat and tried to sound professional. "Yes, but I prefer to go by my middle name," I replied, surprising myself. I did no such thing, I had always gone by Annie, but altering myself to the point of having a different name seemed right to me. She raised her eyebrows at me, and I realized my hesitation.

"It's Candy," I said.

"What an unusual name." Her voice betrayed no real emotion, and I thought this woman would be an excellent poker player.

"I'm Veronica," she said, confirming my suspicion. "I'm glad that you arrived safely. How was the trip?"

"Long," I said. "I see. And how are you finding Oak Tree Town?"

I decided to keep my comment about the stairs to myself and say, "It's very pretty. I love how all the building are different colors. It adds personality."

She nodded one and smiled at me faintly for the first time. "Very good. Well I'm sure you're eager to begin your training, so if you'll follow me I'll take you to Madame Eda."

She started towards the door, and I wanted to groan aloud at the prospect of more walking. I hadn't seen a single car anywhere around here, or a real paved road for that matter. It was like instead of moving to a different town, I'd gone to a different time in history altogether. We passed by what Veronica told me was an Inn and a General Store, crossed a bridge and were suddenly met by open stretches of rolling green land. I inhaled a deep breath, noting how clean and fresh the air smelled.

It was definitely different than the city, and far more beautiful. She took a right at the fork in the path and we ended up by two large fields brimming with crops; whoever was tending them obviously used great care.

"We only have one trader that comes to do business with us at the moment," Veronica said suddenly, "We're hoping that with the combined exports of the five farmers in our town – yourself included – we can interest others in coming here to do the same. There are many things you could possibly ship, but Madame Eda will tell you the specifics."

I was trying to listen carefully to her words but it was somewhat difficult as the path we took had suddenly take a very steep uphill turn and if I spoke I feared my breath would betray me.

"Oh," I managed.

After several more minutes of this, I had to stop, beyond caring what she thought. She turned when she stopped hearing me follow, and surprisingly I saw empathy in her expression, instead of the judgement I'd been expecting. "Tired? These kinds of paths are all over the mountain. The farm you'll be taking over is at the top of a hill, so I expect you'll get used to it eventually."

She linked her hands in front of her, content to wait for me to catch my breath. "I'm sure I will," I agreed when I could be trusted to speak. S

he nodded again and gestured for me to follow. As we went, I pondered her words. Taking over? Maybe there was some kind of misunderstanding . . . I always assumed I would be working with someone on a ranch in exchange for room and board and a modest salary. But the way Veronica said it made it seem like I'd be running the place, and I wasn't sure how to feel about that. We crested the top of one of the hills she spoke of and passed by what looked like a dilapidated old farmhouse and an old looking barn. It appeared abandoned, but I gave it the side eye as I passed.

The ranch we ended up was much neater, if a little sparse. A small house sat proudly in the middle of the land, with a tidy garden behind it. About half the crops were standing tall and probably waiting to be harvested, but two rows of them were beginning to wither. In the distance, I saw a few black and white cows meandering across the field, and I thought it odd that they weren't enclosed in any kind of fence, but rather allowed to roam freely. Another barn stood not too far to my right, and to the left was the river I was pretty sure ran through the whole town.

We approached the door of the house and Veronica raised her hand to knock, but before she could the wooden door swung open, and behind it stood a very short woman with round glasses and a small smile. Her head was covered by a large white bonnet, but strands of gray were sneaking out here and there, and she also wore a dress, green with white sleeves and a pretty white broach pinned to it in the front. I immediately felt a sense of warmth from her and could guess that I would like her very much.

"Good afternoon," the woman said happily.

"Madame Eda, I've brought the new farmer trainee with me. Her name is Candy, and she is very pleased to be here." She glanced sideways at me, and I nodded fiercely in agreement.

I was relieved that this was Eda and not someone as uptight and nerve wracking as Veronica was. Not even an hour around her and I was already stressed.

"Wonderful!" Eda clapped her hands together once, "I'm so pleased to meet you, Miss Candy. We have so much to learn!"

"Well, if you ladies will excuse me, my never ending pile of work awaits . . . Eda, I leave her in your capable hands." Veronica abruptly turned and started back the way we had come, and I couldn't say I was displeased to see her go.

I exhaled a breath I'd been holding in under she was farther away, and Eda gave me a knowing wink.

"She's a stuffy one, isn't she?" Eda mused.

I chuckled nervously. "I mean, I'm sure she's fine."

"She'll warm up once you start proving yourself around here, dear," Eda promised, "Honestly I think she's just nervous about hiring someone so young. Twenty years old! Goodness, you're practically a baby."

Normally I would take offense to a comment like that, but she said it with such affection I knew there was no ill-intent behind it.

"But that's alright," she continued, "those young bones will serve you well in this job, and perhaps you're precisely what this town needs. Besides, you remind me of one of my grandchildren. She has the prettiest blue eyes, just like you, dear."

I blushed. "Thank you, Madame Eda."

She nodded and looked around, as if just now realizing where we were. "Goodness me, here I am babbling while you're standing outside in the heat after what was probably a very long journey! Do forgive me and come in dear. My home is your home."

"Thank you so much," I said sincerely as I followed her into the modest house. She turned down a hall on the left and led me to a large bedroom.

"These things belong to you now," she said quietly, "I have no use for them now that my children and husband are gone. Everything I need is in the other bedroom and the kitchen."

Inside there was a twin size bed with a green comforter, a tall oak wood bookcase filled with books, three different wooden chests of various sizes and a small wooden table with two chairs. I drug my suitcase to the foot of the bed and sat down, grateful to be off my feet.

"I think I'll be very happy here," I said sleepily, "I'm tired now, but normally I'm much more enthusiastic, I swear."

Eda laughed, another strand of hair escaping her bonnet as she did so. "I'm sure you are honey. Please let me know if there's anything I can do to make your stay more comfortable – these next few weeks are probably going to seem very hard at first, but I'm sure you'll do very well."

I quirked an eyebrow in puzzlement. "A few weeks? Won't I be staying indefinitely?"

Eda blinked at me, her confusion mirroring my own. "Of course not, dear," she said finally, "I'm only here to instruct you on the proper ways of farming. You shall have your very own land to work with and mold. Haven't you discussed it with Veronica?"

"Well I . . . I mean" – I cut myself off. In my exhaustion, my brain was failing to provide me with the proper words. I took a deep breath and tried again. "I think I must have misunderstood. I believed I would be working for someone on a farm, not running it myself," I said finally. No way to sugar coat it, I supposed.

"Not that the idea of having my own doesn't please me," I continued, "it's just that I'm not sure I can . . . I mean, there's so much to learn and . . ." I trailed off, aware of how pathetic I sounded. If Veronica heard me now, she'd ship me back to the city for sure. Eda frowned, but not at me; she was staring out the window, seemingly lost in her own thoughts.

Right as I was starting to wonder if she'd forgotten I was there, she said, "Well, that's quite the surprise to you then. Oh well. If anything it should make the job more exciting, don't you think? I may be a withered old woman, dear, but I've got years of experience. You won't find someone better to teach you all there is to know. And as a matter of fact, you'll be getting the farm right beside mine, so if you have questions I'm always here to help."

She smiled again, sure she had put my mind at east. I nodded and smiled back, despite my growing doubts. "Right, of course," I said, "I'm sure it'll be fine."

My words sounded false to my own ears, but if Eda heard it in my voice she chose to ignore it. She stepped closer and patted the back of my hand.

"Best not to mention this to Veronica, Miss Candy, we'll just keep it to ourselves."

"Right," I agreed, thankful that Madame Eda was such a calming, genuine soul.

"I'm sure you'll want to be getting to bed, big day of training tomorrow. Unless you'd like something to eat?"

I shook my head and suppressed a yawn. "I'm okay, thanks."

"Okay then. I'll wake you bright and early tomorrow. Goodnight, dear." Eda turned and walked away, shutting the door behind her, leaving me to my thoughts.

I kicked off my shoes and lay back on the bed, staring up the ceiling and listening to the wind in the trees outside. I had wanted desperately to escape my old life in the city, for sure, but was I biting off more than I could chew? This was an amazingly big responsibility; from what I could tell, a whole town was depending on me and the other farmers, most of whom I'd yet to meet. What if I was terrible at this? Truth be told, I had next to no experience with hard manual labor and the only animal I'd ever had was a small dog named Clyde.

If things went poorly, I'd be sent back to my old home in disgrace, and that just wasn't an option. I was determined to do well. I'd never been good at falling asleep when I had a lot on my mind, and I hadn't even changed into fresh clothes, but my tiredness overcame me and very soon, I fell asleep.


	2. Chapter Two

**Two**

"Good morning, Miss Candy! Rise and shine!"

I opened my eyes, fogginess clouding my mind, and for a second I forgot where I was. I sat up at and looked around at the foreign surroundings before I remembered. Eda was standing in the doorway with a cheerful smile on her lined face and the same bonnet on her head as before.

"Mornin'," I murmured sleepily, rolling my shoulders and stretching my arms. "What time is it?"

"It's five in the morning," Eda replied happily.

"Oh." I'd never been much of a morning person, but obviously that would have to change.

"Get up, get dressed and meet me in the kitchen for breakfast, love," she instructed.

I nodded and yawned again. I dressed myself in a dress similar from yesterday, and additionally donning a reddish kerchief over my hair; funnily enough, the coloring of it almost matched completely. The kitchen smelled wonderful, and upon entering I discovered that Eda had made me pancakes with eggs and bacon.

"You didn't have to go to so much trouble, Madame Eda," I protested as I sat at the table, "I would have been happy with cereal."

"Nonsense, you'll need it to keep up your strength."

We ate in silence, and afterwards I followed her outside, where she began instructed me on how to plant seeds and till the earth. She gave me basic tools like a hoe, a sickle, a watering can, an axe and a hammer.

"There's a lot of wear and tear on these," she told me, "but they'll get the job done, and you can worry about upgrading them later when you get some iron."

"O-okay," I said.

It was easy enough to plant and water everything; she told me about how I could only plant certain things in each season, which made sense. She instructed me to use the sickle on the crops that had withered and by the time I was done I was sweating again. Thankfully it wasn't as hot today; the sun was hiding behind white puffy clouds, and I hoped it would stay there. Eda inspected my work afterwards and smiled her small smile.

"You see, none of that was difficult right? Just a lot of hard work. It's not as easy as it used to be for me anymore. Hard on the joints."

"No, none of it was hard," I agreed.

"So when you get your own land you need to determine what size your garden will be. Make sure not to make it so large that you overexert yourself, but nothing tiny either. Crops will be a large part of your income next to animal products, though most of the time they will be more valuable when converted into a dish, so I hope you like to cook."

"I do actually," I said, happy to have a skill already.

"Good. You will be able to purchase seeds from Asche, the owner of the one vendor who comes here to trade, Silk Country. The calendar in your bedroom marks what days she will be in town at the Trade Depot. Have you seen it yet?" Eda asked.

"No, I haven't seem much of the town outside of the Guild," I admitted.

"Well then, that's what you should do with the rest of your day," Eda decided, "You just follow the path that" –

"Eda!" someone yelled, cutting her off. It was a male voice, and it was coming from the other side of the barn.

"Who is that?" I wondered, the sickle hanging loosely at my side now that I was done with it.

"It sounds like Fritz," she said.

A man rounded the corner, a wide smile on his face. He was a little taller than me, probably in the neighborhood of 5'9, with wild reddish hair and freckles across the bridge of his nose. He had large brown eyes and was wearing a tattered long sleeve white shirt with some small holes in the arms. Over it he had on a tan vest with shiny brown buttons, and brown pants with a patch over the left knee. Perhaps most curiously, he had small white band-aid over his cheek. He was sort of cute in a boyish way.

"Good afternoon, dear," Eda said happily, "This is Candy, she's Oak Tree Town's newest farmer. I'm teaching her the ropes around here."

She turned to me. "Fritz has the ranch just north of town. I thought he might show you around today – Lord knows I shouldn't be doing that much walking." She laughed softly, and I thought I heard a note of regret in her voice. I made a mental note to come and visit her often when I moved away; I got the sense that she was sort of lonely. I wiped the sweat from my brow with a free hand and wished I looked a bit more presentable, but I supposed I should just get used to it.

"Hey there, Candy!" Fritz said with enthusiasm, "It's nice to meet'cha."

"You too," I agreed, "Have you lived here long?"

He frowned and looked away, thinking hard on my question. "Oh, I think it's been about eight months or so, not too long," he said finally, "It's quiet around here, but that's okay because it sure is peaceful!"

"I'm sure the two of you will be fast friends," Eda said, "Now, I think that's enough lessons for today, Miss Candy. Why don't you go and have some fun?"

I handed her the sickle and nodded. "If you insist."

Eda turned and headed for the house, leaving me alone with the grinning stranger.

"I know she wants us to go to town, but I thought we could take a quick dip in the river if you're up for it; I'm baking in this heat," Fritz complained, shoving his hands in his pockets.

I debated. "You're sure it's safe?"

"Oh yeah, there's lots of good swimming holes around here and it's a perfect way to cool off."

"Okay. Why not? I'll go get my suit."

We spent pretty much the whole afternoon in the river; I'd neglected to notice the dock just south of Eda's house, and the cold water felt heavenly in the heat. Fritz turned out to be a pretty cool guy; he had a good sense of humor for sure.

"I'm happy to show you around," he said at one point, "but we can't end up getting to friendly, what with being in competition and all." He winked.

I quirked at eyebrow at him as I treaded water. "Are all the farmers so competitive?"

"Not really. It's more of a working together thing honestly, but we _do_ compete for the right to use all the fields around here, and we compete in all the festivals. Other than that, we all want the success of the town." He inhaled deeply and started floating on his back. "The worst one is Elise, she's really rich and entitled."

"Great," I said, sarcasm lacing my tone.

"The last one is Georgio, he has the farm right next to mine – he's a pretty cool guy," he continued, "Other than that, it's just you and Eda."

"I'm going to do the best I can," I repeated for what felt like the thousandth time.

"I'm sure you'll be great," Fritz said, "You seem really laid back and pretty and level-headed and" –

"Pretty?" I asked, smiling a little.

"Well I mean, yeah, but not that – not that I was looking," Fritz stammered, suddenly looking everywhere but at me.

I laughed softly. "Thank you."

"Mmm-hmm," he said.

"It's getting kinda late, we'd better head to town if we expect to get anything done," I suggested.

He nodded and continued not looking at me, his cheeks flaming red.

Oak Tree Town wasn't a large place by any means, but it sure was cute. The buildings were different shades of blue, pink and muted orange. Fritz pointed out the Guild, which I had already been in, and asked if we wanted to pop by to see Veronica, and I quickly said no, no thank you.

He chuckled. "You'll get used to her, she just wants to see the success of the town. You'll have to go back there sometime; that's where our clinic is, so if you keel over due to heat exhaustion or anything, that's where you'll end up."

"Fun times," I said dryly.

He pointed to a building a little ways down the road. "That's the restaurant. This guy named Reager owns the place, and he makes the _best_ food." Fritz frowned "Then again, maybe I just think that cuz every time I eat there I'm super starving. Hard work sure does make you hungry!"

He turned and pointed to another structure. "Down there is the carpenter's shop, Gunther and his wife can sell ya all kinds of materials which you'll need to build. That's pretty much it for this part of town, other than the General Store there. C'mon, I'll show you the antique store."

We walked down yet another cobblestone path towards the west side of town, where we encountered several two story houses and a large common area with large bushes and long benches.

"There's the store there," Fritz said, pointing.

"It looks like another house," I commented.

"Yeah, I guess. Mistel, the guy who owns it, lives in the upstairs with his older sister Iris." "So none of the others are stores?"

"No, that's Marian's house, the doctor here. Over there is Margot's and Agate's places, and the last one belongs to Klaus. C'mon, I'll show you the Trade Depot. It's where you'll buy and sell most of your stuff."

I followed him down even more stairs past the carpenter's shop to a wide open circular square with a single vendor set up on the northern side.

"Asche!" Fritz called as we approached. The man behind the counter gave us a small smile.

"Good evening," he said formally.

Fritz introduced us and I glanced briefly at his wares; I didn't have money to buy anything from him now, but it was nice to know what I'd be working with. Afterwards the sun was starting to set.

"We'd better start walking back," Fritz said, looking up at the sky, "If we hurry, we can stop by my farm real quick and I'll show you my cows."

I figured my legs would probably be strong as steel if this was the amount of walking I'd be doing pretty much every day. As we started back, Fritz ran ahead to try and catch some kind of beetle he saw on one of the trees. I laughed as he slowly crept up on it.

"What are you going to do with a bug?" I asked. "Surely it doesn't sell for that much money."

"It doesn't," he agreed without taking his eyes off the prize, "but look at the black spots on its wings!"

I chuckled at his odd reasoning. I sat down on one of the wooden benches to wait for him. A few people passed by, but for the most part the town seemed mostly deserted. I was glad to have at least one new friend; Fritz seemed more than willing to hang out despite his jokes about being in competition.

"Hmph." He approached the bench with pursed lips. "It got away."

I pursed my own and tried not to laugh; he looked like a small child who had been denied chocolate.

"There'll be other beetles," I promised, "Hey, let's stop at that restaurant before we head back, I'm starving and I don't want Eda to have to cook a big meal for me again."

Fritz eyed the building in the distance and put a hand on his stomach. "I guess I _could_ go for some grub," he said, longing creeping into his eyes.

I jumped to my feet and we walked over to it. Inside, a tall blond man was standing behind the counter, polishing a glass with a rag like a bartender. With his sparkling blue eyes and charming smile, he was quite handsome.

"Hey Fritz," the man said, setting the glass on the bar.

"Evening buddy!" Fritz plopped down onto a stool and took a deep breath. "Mmm, what's cookin'?"

"Udon noodles with egg," he said, his eyes flitting over to me. "Hello there. I don't believe we've met."

"Oh!" Fritz slapped his forehead with his palm. "Sorry! You know how distracting my stomach can be. Jeez. Candy, this is Reager. Reager, this is the town's newest farmer, she just got here yesterday. I've been showing her around."

Reager gave me a wide grin, and I blushed and toyed with a lock of my hair. "Nice to meet you," I said politely, moving to take the stool next to Fritz.

"Likewise. Veronica has been looking for the fifth farmer for a long time, I'm glad she finally made the decision to hire someone as lovely as yourself." Reager winked at me and gently sat a bowl of noodles in front of me.

"I can get you a menu if you'd prefer something else," he said, "but I highly recommend this special of mine. It'll fill you up after all that walking."

"It smells great," I said truthfully, eyeing them. My stomach gurgled and I eagerly dug in.

Fritz laughed as I snarfed. "You're just as hungry as me, huh, Candy?"

I looked up at the two boys and blinked, realizing I was stuffing my face like a starving animal. I slurped another noddle and blushed again. Reager must think me a complete slob, and I found I didn't care for that idea.

"I …uh, yeah," I said, lost for words.

Reager chuckled and put another bowl in front of Fritz. He quizzed me a bit on where I'd come from, to which I gave vague replies. The past mattered little to me, and the less people knew, the better. As far as I was concerned, my life began yesterday. Reager seemed curious, but he didn't push for more information.

"Well, I inherited this place from my grandfather, so I've lived here all my life. My cooking, if I do say so myself, is excellent, but I'd be able to make so much more if I could get different exotic ingredients from different traders." He sighed longingly, a lock of blond hair falling in front of his left eye, and my fingers twitched, wanting to push it away.

I smiled a little to myself; only two days in town in a town with next to no population, and I had already developed a slight crush.

"The noodles were great," I said, pushing him my empty bowl. "How much do I owe you?"

"Consider it a welcoming present," he said, taking the bowl and heading towards the sink in the back.

"Do I also get a welcoming present?!" Fritz called eagerly.

"You've been coming to my restaurant every day for almost a year, whether it's closed or not," Reager replied dryly, "I ought to charge you for two bowls!"

Fritz grumbled and lifted his bowl to drink the broth. I laughed and stood, excusing myself to the bathroom down the hall. As I was coming back, I stopped just short of the corner; the boys were talking.

"So, what do you think?" Fritz was saying, "She seems really laid back."

"I think she's perfectly pleasant," Reager said over the clattering of dishes being moved around, "I honestly didn't expect Veronica to hire someone so young though."

"I'm young!" Fritz put in.

"And you don't have the most organized farm in the world, my friend."

"It's not that bad," Fritz grumbled.

"Well, I suppose time will tell what sort of farmer she will be. In the meantime, we'll have something new around here to look at." He laughed softly.

"Just what you need, Reager, another girl in this town drooling over you," Fritz complained, "You hog all the attention!"

I frowned. I heard Reager chuckle again, but he didn't reply. When it became clear their conversation was over, I made my presence known.

"Bit of a ladies man, are you?" I asked as I made my way back to my stool. Reager spun around, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"I wouldn't say that," he said eventually, a slight smirk on his lips. Fritz leaned towards me and said conspiratorially, "You'll quickly see that he's the only one who wouldn't."

Reager scowled at him. "People in this town talk, there's not much I can do about it."

"I was just teasing," I said quickly, not wanting to cause an argument between the two friends.

"I know," Reager sighed, "It's alright, it's not you. I should be used to Fritz and his exasperating ways by now."

"Dunno what you mean," Fritz said, his brown eyes wide. "Hey, buddy, how about a slice of cake?"

We stayed and chatted for another hour or so, during which I tasted Reager's delicious apple pie with whipped cream. I insisted on paying for that dish despite his objections, insisting that one was enough and he ought to charge his customers if he wanted to stay in business. He chuckled and waved me away.

"I've got that covered, I'll be charging Fritz double for the aggravation." He looked at his friend and rolled his eyes, so I knew he wasn't serious.

As Fritz and I got up to leave, Reager went to hold the door on our way out. "I hope I'll be seeing you around, Candy? I really enjoyed meeting you."

I blushed again and resisted the urge to hide behind the curtain of my hair. "I did too, and I'm sure I'll see you again soon. I'll get hungry doing all that work." And probably end up spending all my money at his restaurant instead of cooking at home like a sensible person.

"Have a good night," he said.

I nodded and followed Fritz out. It had cooled down considerably, and it was starting to get dark.

"I hope you have a flashlight or we'll be feeling our way back to Eda's," I said, looking up the sky. It was so clear here, and ever so beautiful.

The city was gorgeous too, its own way, but to me it couldn't compare to the beauty of nature. And I felt a sudden surge of happiness. I hummed a melody to myself and started walking, Fritz hurrying to catch up.

"Yah, it's a good idea not to stay out past six," he said, "at least for you – it takes longer to get back up to that part of the mountain. I guess we don't have time to stop at my place." He frowned.

"Another day," I promised, "Tomorrow maybe, after Eda is through giving me lessons."

He brightened. "Okay!"

He then started to prattle about his two cows and how just recently the quality of their milk had gone up, so he felt confident his friendship with them had increased as well. His hadn't been able to plant as many crops this season due to lack of money, and gave me a long speech about the importance of planning and saving. I was content to listen to his idle chatter, only half listening most of the time, taking my surroundings and breathing deeply in the fresh air. By the time we reached the mountain train that led to the abandoned farmhouse and old barn, he'd moved on to the different types of crops thrived in each season.

"I'm sure I'll plant turnips and potatoes as soon as I get my own land," I said, "Eda's been great about showing me how to till the land and plant and water."

"Crops have quality grades too, just like animal products – the higher the quality, the better it sells for at the Trade Depot," Fritz lectured.

"Interesting," I said.

I paused to examine a particularly tall oak tree, the ground around it littered with large rocks and yellow flowers.

"All kinds of things grow around here," Fritz said, "it's hopefully one of the things that'll attract new visitors."

"Mmm-hmm." He finally seemed to notice my lack of interest and stopped talking, instead allowing me some peace. "C'mon Candy, we've gotta get going," he said eventually, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

I was about to agree when I noticed movement a little ways behind Fritz. A shape next to another oak tree.

"Who is that?" I asked, squinting.

Fritz turned to look. "I can't tell from here, let's go and see."

We moved to another clearing further up the steep mountain trail, next to large pond covered with lily pads. "Oh, it's Klaus," Fritz said as we got closer, "He takes walks up here sometimes."

"Oh . . . ." I said.

The man behind the tree must have heard our approaching voices, because he turned towards us and I saw him more closely. I froze, my mouth forming a small 'o' of surprise. What a small world this was.

"Hello, Klaus," I said softly as his golden eyes fell on me.

He quirked at eyebrow at me in confusion, obviously trying to put a name to the face. I wouldn't blame him if he didn't remember; it had been a long time.

But recognition crept into his expression and he finally replied, "Hello, Annie."

He looked the same as I remembered. Hair black as pitch, in an organized disarray with that piercing gaze. He was tall and had a voice as soothing as smooth as silk. As I recalled, he wore formal clothing, black trousers paired with a long green jacket and a white cravat around his throat. Seeing him immediately made me feel like my awkward sixteen year old self, uncomfortable in my own skin and harboring and intense and hopeless crush. Klaus had lived in the same city as me and my parents, on the other side of town, but all the same.

He worked as a perfumist, creating scents tailored to each client's desires. And my mother was a pretty good customer. Normally Klaus would only stop by every few weeks to deliver her latest request, but because she was so picky, so would often insist on him staying for tea or coffee so she could discuss in detail what type of thing she wanted created.

She would ask for things that to me seemed impossible to bottle; one she asked him to capture the essence of sunshine, to which he had replied, "What does the sun smell like, Emily? You must be a tad more specific."

She had frowned but conceded, asking for something more reasonable. I mostly made myself scarce during their interactions, and I think I only spoke to him a handful of times, but at the time I fancied myself in love. I was young and stupid and didn't understand my feelings at the time. I never found out his exact age, but I deduced it was quite a significant different.

I asked my mother once, and she'd given me an odd look before replying, "Too old for you, my sweet." She paused and then giggled. "And too young for me, unfortunately." He'd disappeared right before my seventeenth birthday, and when I asked her why he'd stopped calling on us, my mother's lip had curled in distaste.

"He's gone," she told me, "He's not coming back either, so I would rid myself of those thoughts in your head if I were you, my darling."

I'd blushed and denied it, but my heart felt like a rock in my chest for weeks. Eventually I developed a new crush on a different boy in my high school and Klaus drifted to the back of my mind. I hadn't thought of him in years. But not here he was, right in front of me, three years later. He hadn't changed a bit.

I wondered if I had moved past my silly teenage crush and be able to view him only as an old family friend. But as he assessed me with those eyes and my gaze drifted down to my feet and I felt familiar heat begin to creep my neck and into my cheeks, I knew the answer was a big fat no.


End file.
